London is a steampunk nightmare on wheels in Peter Jackson's Mortal Engines trailer

Playing before some showings of Star Wars: The Last Jedithis weekend was a trailer for a whole new science-fiction film franchise. Now, the trailer for the Peter Jackson-produced Mortal Engines is available to watch online.

Unlike Star Wars, Mortal Engines does not take place in a galaxy far far away. Instead, it’s all-too-bound to Earth, or the dying steampunk-inflected wasteland that remains of it anyway. Based on the novels by Philip Reeve, Mortal Engines portrays a dystopian world where human survivors band together in small towns-on-wheels to traverse the wasteland and make the most of its limited resources. But one wheeled monstrosity towers above all, and actually feeds on the others for its own sustenance.

“What is that?” One character asks.

“That is London,” replies outlaw Hester Shaw (Hilda Helmar), as the city of London gobbles up a smaller town full of poor scavengers into its infernal belly.

Looking like a mix between Mad Max: Fury Road and Howl’s Moving Castle, Mortal Engines was directed by Christopher Rivers and produced by Jackson. It’s set to hit theaters in December 2018. Watch the trailer above.